Any supplements for over 40+?

[Evenflow80]

So not sure if anyone here was following my saga, but I recently made the move from my BJJ academy of 7+ years to Legion AJJ (Keenans school).

I love it there. So much better in almost every way.

BUT I underestimated just how much better everyone would be there. I went from being near top of the food chain at my old gym (I was running classes and rarely would I lose a roll except with handful of much bigger people), but st Legion, I'm barely hanging with competitive blue belts (I'm supposed to be a black belt which makes it even harder)

Anyways.... the point of this thread is to ask if there are any supplements you guys recommend for those over 40 (im almost 41). I tried creatine but it causes a lot of bloating . Ideally I want something to help me recover quicker and possibly have more endurance during training.

Not steroids though. I know it's a long shot but I'm sure there are other old timers here that know what I mean.

 

[winterbike]

Not steroids though.

You're not giving us a lot of wiggle room here.

Apart from fish oil and maybe vitamin D, there isn't much out there that will help. Eating clean, eating lots, and sleeping lots will be the biggest difference. Supplements will mostly be a waste of money.

 

[NoSmilez]

There is some evidence Beta Alanine helps with endurance running. Maybe buy it by itself. I wouldn't take a preworkout though. Most formulations kick in too fast and BJJ class is 1.5 hours. There is a dip in the buzz from the pre workout by the time you start rolling. You will be highly stimulated during the drills/warmups then crash when you start rolling. I think best is sleep more and eat quality food to help recovery. Maybe ZMA if you want to try to improve sleep.

 

[kjg1672]

Maybe you should just be a little less hard on yourself and a little more accepting of the situation. I'm sure you're a legit black belt. Those blue belts are probably young, strong, and fast, just like you were 10-20 years ago. Not much you can do about it. We all get older, if we're lucky.

 

[shunyata]

When you dove into the shark tank, it's good to take fish oil. Helps with the recovery and joints.

Congratulations on diving into the shark tank bro.

In a few years you're going to be much better than you ever would have been staying in the old place.

 

[ChickenBrother]

Congrats on landing at the much better gym - glad that worked out for you bro. As others have said, there's no magic solution on supplements, but training while older is all about good sleep, recovery and diet. Make sure you're eating plenty of leafy green veggies like raw spinach, salad, kale, etc. Also plenty of protein. I love beef but also mix it up with chicken and fish. You can bake that shit in the oven with olive oil and it's quick, easy and delicious. Apples, oatmeal, whole wheat bread, brown rice or wheat pasta.

The other thing I did around 40 (I'm now 48) is switched to barbell squat emphasis for strength training. I really like StrongLifts 5x5 which is a free novice powerlifting program. Despite what anyone tells you, training BJJ by itself is NOT a complete full-body exercise, especially if you don't engage full speed takedowns from the feet. If you're not doing at least some kind of strength training off the mats, you're setting yourself up for injuries and bad posture as you get older. Regular squats in particular dramatically increased my energy and I suspect it naturally increased my T levels. They also strengthen your entire posterior chain, improve your posture and are great preventative maintenance to avoid injuries. You will put on muscle (assuming you're eating well and getting enough sleep/recovery) which will also help you in your rolls.

 

[Evenflow80]

When you dove into the shark tank, it's good to take fish oil. Helps with the recovery and joints.

Congratulations on diving into the shark tank bro.

In a few years you're going to be much better than you ever would have been staying in the old place.

Thanks man. I think so to for sure

 

[Evenflow80]

Congrats on landing at the much better gym - glad that worked out for you bro. As others have said, there's no magic solution on supplements, but training while older is all about good sleep, recovery and diet. Make sure you're eating plenty of leafy green veggies like raw spinach, salad, kale, etc. Also plenty of protein. I love beef but also mix it up with chicken and fish. You can bake that shit in the oven with olive oil and it's quick, easy and delicious. Apples, oatmeal, whole wheat bread, brown rice or wheat pasta.

The other thing I did around 40 (I'm now 48) is switched to barbell squat emphasis for strength training. I really like StrongLifts 5x5 which is a free novice powerlifting program. Despite what anyone tells you, training BJJ by itself is NOT a complete full-body exercise, especially if you don't engage full speed takedowns from the feet. If you're not doing at least some kind of strength training off the mats, you're setting yourself up for injuries and bad posture as you get older. Regular squats in particular dramatically increased my energy and I suspect it naturally increased my T levels. They also strengthen your entire posterior chain, improve your posture and are great preventative maintenance to avoid injuries. You will put on muscle (assuming you're eating well and getting enough sleep/recovery) which will also help you in your rolls.

Thanks a lot!

 

[Knock Out Ned]

One of my training partners (in his mid-forties) looks like he’s cut from a piece of marble and is in great shape.

He got a really bad headache one day after practice. I asked him when his last physical was, and he to told me he never goes to the doctor!

He went and found out his blood pressure was out of control and it was also affecting his heart. He ended up changing his diet and quit drinking.

I’ve always been lean and muscular. At 43, I can eat cheeseburgers all day and still be 140 pounds and have a six pack (I don’t really drink alcohol very much).

His situation scared me, so over the past three months I totally changed my diet.

I noticed after 41, it was taking longer for me to recover and the cardio was getting harder.

I was a junk food junkie, and I cut out processed food. I was already a big water drinker but I cut out Gatorade and juice.

I eat vegetarian lunches every day and increased my fruit and veggies (especially fruit).

I didn’t feel any different for about a month, but now it’s like night and day.

My cardio is through the roof, and I can train consecutive days and not get sore.

Give it a try and see how you feel after a month.

The first two to three months was the hardest to not eat bad food. Also, give yourself a cheat meal or two.

 

[Evenflow80]

One of my training partners (in his mid-forties) looks like he’s cut from a piece of marble and is in great shape.

He got a really bad headache one day after practice. I asked him when his last physical was, and he to told me he never goes to the doctor!

He went and found out his blood pressure was out of control and it was also affecting his heart. He ended up changing his diet and quit drinking.

I’ve always been lean and muscular. At 43, I can eat cheeseburgers all day and still be 140 pounds and have a six pack (I don’t really drink alcohol very much).

His situation scared me, so over the past three months I totally changed my diet.

I noticed after 41, it was taking longer for me to recover and the cardio was getting harder.

I was a junk food junkie, and I cut out processed food. I was already a big water drinker but I cut out Gatorade and juice.

I eat vegetarian lunches every day and increased my fruit and veggies (especially fruit).

I didn’t feel any different for about a month, but now it’s like night and day.

My cardio is through the roof, and I can train consecutive days and not get sore.

Give it a try and see how you feel after a month.

The first two to three months was the hardest to not eat bad food. Also, give yourself a cheat meal or two.

I actually have had high vlood pressure for years and have been taking 40mg of lisiniprol every morning . Do you think high blood pressure has a negative effect on cardio ??

Honestly I often times feel I Have the worst cardio of anyone in the room. I often feel dizzy and will pass out while training and I don't think that's normal at all. I look aroind and sure people are tired too but no where near how I feel. Last time we started warmups practicing single leg entries and no joke within a few reps I was so winded already.

I'm not overweight (I'm 5'8, 160) and I've been doing bjj for almost 8 years now. I always chalked up my cardio getting worse/training getting harder as ne just getting older. But after reading your post and about your friend I'm starting to wonder

 

[Flower2dPeople]

I just take fish oil, vit c and d.

 

[siidi]

I would suggest sauna and ice baths and eating healthy and enough.

 

[winterbike]

Do you think high blood pressure has a negative effect on cardio ??

Probably the other way around. Bad cardio leads to high blood pressure.

Do you do any kind of zone 2 cardio?

 

[Evenflow80]

Probably the other way around. Bad cardio leads to high blood pressure.

Do you do any kind of zone 2 cardio?

I'm not sure what that is ?

Edit : found it online. It's very interesting and I'm reading up on it. Thanks!

 

[Einheri]

Cod liver oil is magic.

 

[method115]

I would start taking the creatine again. I think there are different kinds that can help with the bloat so I would look into that.

 

[KBE6EKCTAH_CCP]

I am not going to give you nutrition advice TS because I don t have much knowledge.

What I will say is that I have observed significant differences in energy depending on the hours of sleep I get. I need a lot of sleep, around 9-10 hours, to be able to spar effectively after a full day of white collar job. Otherwise I lack energy. Not cardio, but energy.

Try it. Oh and I followed your thread and am happy for you that you switchdd to the better school, TS.

 

[Evenflow80]

I am not going to give you nutrition advice TS because I don t have much knowledge.

What I will say is that I have observed significant differences in energy depending on the hours of sleep I get. I need a lot of sleep, around 9-10 hours, to be able to spar effectively after a full day of white collar job. Otherwise I lack energy. Not cardio, but energy.

Try it. Oh and I followed your thread and am happy for you that you switchdd to the better school, TS.

This is so true about sleep.

And thanks !

 

[Knock Out Ned]

I actually have had high vlood pressure for years and have been taking 40mg of lisiniprol every morning . Do you think high blood pressure has a negative effect on cardio ??

I asked my wife (she’s a physician in the ER) and she said high blood pressure can potentially affect your cardio.

I’d talk to your PCP about it, because my experience is purely anecdotal (cleaning up your diet couldn’t hurt though imo).

I do cardio outside of BJJ, but what worked best for me was cleaning up my diet and adding lots of fruit and veggies.

 

[ChickenBrother]

+1 to more fruits and veggies and regular sleep, preferably 8+ hours every night.

TS I'm not a doctor and won't presume to know your specifics, but I've been training for a long time (33 years of running + S&C and probably 15 years across wrestling, Judo and BJJ) and I feel like more often than not, folks I've observed on high blood pressure medication tend to have something out of whack with lifestyle, whether that's diet, exercise or sleep. You obviously have an active lifestyle training BJJ regularly and are a healthy bodyweight. FWIW I was the same height and weight as you from mid 20's to around 40. I put on about 10 lbs in my early 40's by adding regular barbell squats and that extra size and strength not only makes me more effective and less injury prone on the mats, it's given me more energy and I feel great in my late 40's full natty.

Whatever your diet is, if it's not based on whole grains (oatmeal, brown rice, wheat pasta, whole grain bread), lean meats, veggies (both raw and cooked, it's all good) and fruits, you're doing yourself a disservice. Switching from eating out or fast food to preparing unprocessed foods at home made a HUGE difference for me.

Re. training, I've always looked at BJJ as skill training with incidental cardio training built in. Ideally you need to be doing both strength and cardio training and that's what I've always aimed for. When I'm training BJJ regularly I treat that as cardio and I supplement with 2 days/week of barbell training for strength. If you don't currently do any strength training, I highly recommend trying out Strong Lifts 5x5:

https://stronglifts.com/5x5/

It's meant for 3 x week but you'll still get benefit doing it 2 x week if that's all you can fit in. After I had a great experience with it, I've gotten 5 or 6 buddies to start it (all in their 40's, one in his 50's) who were either sedentary or focused on cardio training and all of them loved it. More energy, more strength. And the program is pretty much idiot-proof.

If you add strength training, clean up your diet and get proper sleep, I don't know if it'll get you off blood pressure meds, but I promise at worst it'll make you feel healthier and more energetic. Like Shogun said, eaty, sleepy, trainy.